Carb leaking fuel into airbox

[iceblast]

My bike started leaking fuel into the airbox on a cross state trip sunday. cant figure out what it is seems to be happening more at higher speeds. Any suggestions?

[jetlee]

How do you know it was 'leaking'? What did you do to determine this? Knowing how you determined this will help us help you.

From the info provided so far:

It's either "fuel standoff" or "reversion".

Is your bike stock? I'm going to assume so since you still have the airbox. In which case it's a little bit of both and is just inherent with the engine design.

Does it leak fuel while the engine is off and sitting? If that's the case tap the bottom of the carb with a rubber mallet to make sure the float isn't stuck.

[iceblast]

I was riding about and when I ran out of fuel prematurely I looked at the side of the bike and found gas on the side of the engine, opened the airbox and found a good amount both on the filter and in the bottom of the airbox. Couldn't reproduce the results with the bike sitting. Ran carb cleaner through system. riding around town 30-35mph noticed nothing. Left town and went on the highway. Arriving at next stop the gas is on the side of the bike again.

[jetlee]

How dirty/clean is your air filter? How does your boot look?

[iceblast]

It was new, just bought the bike from the HD dealer out here. Put about 360-380 miles on it in the last month or two. Had 1008 on it when i bought it.

[jetlee]

This is perplexing given it's new, low miles, and the issue only comes up on the highway.

That being said, most all carb issues can be directly related to the rubber boot that connects it to the "manifold". I would replace that (it's a few bucks and very straightforward), don't over tighten it, then go for a long ride and see how it does. Grab an extra boot just in case; or buy Thumpe's Super-Boot and consider it preventative maintenance.

The boot can get hairline cracks that cause all kinds of weird issues and wreak havoc when trying to troubleshoot those issues. First step is always "replace das boot."

i'm still not sold on it not being a stuck float, though. Thump the float bowl with a rubber mallet while you're changing the boot, for good measure.

[iceblast]

Alright well I would rather fix it good then fix it twice, where do I get said superboot? And how much.

[jetlee]

Forum Member Thumpe makes/sells them. Also ask him about his other products you may be interested in.

[iceblast]

Alright Sounds good will post results after rejetting switching to irridium and replacing das boot.

[pierce]

That doesn't sound like a boot issue to me, sounds like a stuck float. If fuel was coming out into the airbox from the carb then that definitely is it.

Just try tapping the float bowl with the back of a screwdriver and see if you can unstick it. If not just pull the bowl and unstick the float. spray some carb cleaner in their while you are it. This is a common issue, nothing to worry about.